Downing Street Says

Asked if the Prime Minister had had any conversations with President Obama, Chancellor Merkel or President Sarkozy in the last 72 hours and if not what was he doing to address the crisis, the PMS said there had been lots of conversations with these leaders in recent weeks. He said the Prime Minister was focussed on protecting the UK economy from the global economic storm, and that by taking the action we had taken and by having a credible plan for dealing with the deficit we had ensured that the UK had been seen as a safe haven by the markets. Asked if the Prime Minister shared President Obama’s concern about the Eurozone, the PMS said that was exactly what the Prime Minister had been saying the previous day and at previous meetings. Asked if there was anything further the UK could do, the PMS said we had been encouraging a resolution to the crisis by talking to our European counterparts and others around the world. The PMS said we had been arguing at the G20 for an IMF that was properly resourced to act as a global backstop, but some actions were for eurozone countries.

Asked if the Prime Minister was concerned that a small number of European countries seemed to be making all the decisions, the PMS said that people would expect eurozone leaders like President Sarkozy and Chancellor Merkel to be at the heart of these discussions.

Asked further questions about UK involvement in Eurozone discussions, the PMS said there would be a discussion on economic governance in the European Union at the next European Council. The PMS said President Van Rompuy has been asked to report on options to the European Council and the UK would be fully engaged in discussions ahead of that meeting. The PMS said that the UK had been making the point that any changes to governance needed to take account of the needs of all 27 members of the European Union.

Asked if the Prime Minister was pleased that our bond yields were low, the PMS said that yields reflected a view in markets that the UK was a safe haven, but that it also reflected the continued uncertainty in other markets. The PMS said that we knew that problems in the eurozone would create problems for us here, so we were not complacent and we were doing everything we could to ensure there is a resolution to the crisis.

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» Friday, November 11, 2011

Eurozone

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